Blue Moon Sails Away: Catching Up A Bit

It has been a while so I promised I would get things current. It seems like not much happens but when we look back on the past few weeks, we have kept busy. Once the solar was finished and the mizzen mast work was up and running we found other outlets for our time. While running back and forth to shore, we noticed a boat with a different hatch shade. I had made some from pictures I had from the internet but with no real idea of how to make them or deploy them and here was one in real life! More on that to follow. Doing anything on a mooring ball just takes more time than if you were in a house or in a marina. First off, there is the commute to shore, tying up the dinghy then walking or biking where you want to go. The upside is laundry is all finished in the length of time it takes to wash and dry a load since if the machines are free they all wash and dry at once. Let's face it, with laundry you have to grab at any positive you can! Since we can only carry so much at one time, grocery runs for fruits, vegetables, dairy, etc was usually a daily trip. Just before we leave, there is one big trip and then we call a cab. This time our trip was exponentially helped by the loan of a car from Leda and Roland on Kokomo on a neighboring ball. David had become his "radio and solar whisperer" and they were grateful. It was much appreciated. It all had to come back in the dinghy which makes for quite the sight. All of our purchases in the bottom with us on the rails. Besides the chores we also attended pot lucks, played bocce ball, went to movies at the library, went to the seafood festival, attended a few plays at the local play playhouse, watched the Super Bowl (actually we went to socialize and eat but there was a game in the background), attended groups talking about provisioning; going to Cuba, exploring the Keys and how to navigate the ICW going North. We met a lot of great people from all walks of life and in various stages of life from young families to active seniors. All making for a memorable stop in Boot Key Harbor.

I don't really like early mornings but if I have to be up, might as well get
a picture of the sunrise.

One of the interesting things that happens at a beach is the release of rehabilitated
sea turtles. No, they are coming from drug or drink rehab, but they were all rescued
by someone and taken to the Turtle Hospital in Marthon for treatment. When they
are well enough, they are released back into the ocean. This day there were 3 released.

There are vans that will go and pick up the injured or ill turtles and take them to
the hospital. The staff are all highly trained and dedicated to keeping the endangered animals
from becoming extinct. Sadly, humans are the cause of most of their problems. Plastic bags,
balloons and drink bottles all look like a turtle's favorite dish, jellyfish. Discarded line gets
tangled in their flippers or hooks embedded and then get infected. Please be careful of your trash.

This was as close I I got to actually seeing the turtle release. There was lots of
clapping so I know it happened.

One day we took the boat out along with a friend, Rick, to the Sombrero Reef.
This lighthouse marks it as a warning to boats since the reef is large and relatively shallow.
It was so sad to read the description of a fabulous reef populated by thriving coral communities
of all kinds only to see a mostly dead reef. There were a lot of sea fans and beautiful fish
but most of the hard coral had died. We did see some small outcroppings of staghorn and other
hard corals that were either making a comeback or had been seeded there. I saw a few sponges
and soft coral but nothing to match the 1997 guide book's description.

The reef is a very popular spot since it is close to Marathon and tourist boats
are there daily if the weather permits.

Inside Book Key harbor are a wide variety of critters. We saw dolphin, the whorl of water
over a manatee, sea hares, tarpon and spotted eagle rays. Only this guy came close enough
for a picture. One weird creature we never saw but sure heard was a cusk eel. We thought we
were having electrical problems because we kept hearing this strange bzzz sound. We heard the
next day that the eels were very active in the harbor and make that sound. It happened several
more times but we didn't take the boat apart looking for the problem.

I ordered the Sunbrella and made the cover. I have had the sewing machine
out several times. I made a prototype cover to make sure it would work
then ordered the good stuff to be more waterproof.

My birthday came around while we were in Boot Key and somehow David
managed to sneak flowers aboard and keep them alive until the next day.
The roses and button mums opened up in a few days to great effect.